Ismael Estrada
360° Producer

Hearing’s underway in courtroom B in San Angelo, Texas.  The purpose is to review the state’s “family service plans” outlining what parents need to do to get their families back, and to make sure the parents understand what the state is requiring.  The state says the plans are tools to help family reunification.

Judge Thomas Gosset presided over one mother, Nora Jeffs, the mother of 8 minor children.  All the cases were grouped into one, as they had the same mother.

Child Protective Services (CPS) child case worker Irene Schweneger (SP?) takes the stand.

One problem, the caseworker says, that the state is looking to remedy is that all 8 of her children have been placed in different parts of the state.  Ms. Jeffs has been driving all over Texas to visit them.

CPS says it is aware that some health issues have popped up while the children have been in CPS care.  The youngest child, a 1- 1/2 year old boy, has had various illnesses including minor ear infections, but the child required hospitalization.  Unsure why.
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Ismael Estrada
CNN Supervising Producer

Still on the stand: Dr. Bruce Perry…the State is asking the questions

*Says his role in this was AFTER the raid, his office was contacted by CPS because of his role in secondary trauma.

*Perry says that the decision to keep children with mothers was a respectful thing to do, because of the world that these children lived in was isolated. Perry Thought it was a reasonable and flexible thing to do.

*He says that he would not be surprised if the family would cooperate to a point, and NOT talk about many things. He says that children who live in an insulated environment would be very slow in offering information. He says that he felt that the mental health team needed to spend time with the children.

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Ismael Estrada
CNN Supervising Producer

Court proceedings this morning have been very choppy….lots of questions filled with many objections…here are my notes thus far:

On the stand: Angie Voss, Supervisor of investigations for Child Protective Services…

This is Cross examination…

*Voss says there was evidence of broken bones….

*She says she does not believe it is safe to return the children in the home.

*Judge then asked to hear from the attorney who represents the parents, there is some questioning about “serving” the parents and the children, whether there is difficulty in determining what parent is attached to what child…

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Ismael Estrada, CNN Supervising Producer

6:45pm CT

Several attorneys cross examine Angie Voss, who supervises the investigation for Children Protection Services.

They ask CPS reasoning for removing the children, whether CPS followed policy in going in, who gave the authority to allow DNA swabs. (How and when DNA swabs were taken is not clear.)

They asked what immediate danger the children were in…was their religion, their following of their “prophet” Warren Jeffs enough to remove the children?

Voss testified one of the reasons was the belief that children are supposed to have children, that they are supposed to be married when they are told..

Voss said”it’s not about religion, it’s about child abuse”

Other issues raised: Why did they take the boys? Were children taken even after birth certificates were provided? And more…

Ismael Estrada
CNN Supervising Producer

5:46p CT

More testimony from Angie Voss, Supervisor for investigation for Child Protection Services:

She began to see a pattern, she began to note that there were mothers who were 16 and they were married and called each other sister wives. 

Many of the girls talked, said that if the prophet wanted them to marry, then they were supposed to do that. 

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Ismael Estrada
CNN supervising Producer

3:08 pm CT

Testimony of Angie Voss, supervisor for investigation for CPS, been a supervisor for 6 years, and investigator before that.

The department received a report on March 29th and 11:32 pm. Allegations of a 16 year old girl of abuse she had received at the YFZ ranch.

Also the concern that there were other girls living at the ranch where this young lady was believed to be living…100 to 150 other girls.

Initially 12 case workers assigned, they needed more. She was there to coordinate and supervise the investigation.

She arrived at the ranch gates with a team at 9pm on Thursday the 3rd. Law enforcement had arrived first. There were Schleicher County Cops, and Texas Rangers…

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